The measurement of soccer

The start-up Kinexon has developed a new technology to capture motion data and has conquered first the US sports world and then soccer. Now the Munich-based company is increasingly making inroads into industry.
There are probably not many companies that do business with both Gianni Infantino and Oliver Zipse. Swiss-born Infantino has been the head of soccer's world governing body FIFA for five years, while Zipse has headed up car manufacturer BMW since 2019. Two worlds that have so far only been brought together by TV entertainer Stefan Raab at his car ball clowning events.
But the Munich-based start-up Kinexon has achieved something similar. With its real-time localization technology, the company equips large industrial companies such as BMW as well as sporting events such as FIFA. Last week, the company proudly announced that it is now a partner of the association when it comes to measuring soccer data and making it easier for coaches, players and fans to analyze.
"In a way, we have developed a basic technology," explains Co-Managing Director Oliver Trinchera proudly. He developed the idea for the product, which Kinexon now sells successfully, together with Alexander Hüttenbrink, whom he met at the Technical University of Munich. "We were at the Allianz Arena together one day and realized how much effort goes into data collection there," he recalls. But what was recorded there was both very imprecise and very time-consuming: "Sometimes a person had to follow the players' movements on a screen with a mouse."
Hüttenbrink and Trinchera quickly came up with an approach that would simplify this process. They developed a sensor that the players wear on their bodies. With the help of devices installed on the edge of the pitch, the movement data of all athletes can be recorded, processed and analyzed with pinpoint accuracy.
An elegant solution at first glance. But anyone who follows soccer knows how allergic the scene is to change. For example, coaches whose coaching went beyond "Go out and play soccer" were long derided as "laptop coaches". Other sports are more receptive to new technologies. "That's one of the reasons we went to the USA first with our product," says Trinchera. This is a larger market with a greater affinity for technology. However, there is also a lot of competition. "At the beginning, we were told that we wouldn't stand a chance there," says Trinchera. But the move overseas paid off: within a year, Kinexon had equipped three quarters of the NBA basketball league with its technology. The US ice hockey league NHL followed suit, as did the National Football League. With these successes behind them, the breakthrough in Europe was also achieved. "Around 50 percent of Bundesliga clubs are now also among our customers," says Trinchera.
In view of the advantages that the founder lists for his technology, this seems only logical. "Players can use our technology to prevent injuries, coaches can improve tactics and fans get a whole new insight into the game," he explains. At Kinexon, all steps of the data processing procedure are available from a single source: collection, display and analysis.
The next step is the industrial sector. There, Kinexon wants to use its technology to help make Industry 4.0 a reality. "There are a lot of things in motion on a factory floor too, and locating and registering them helps with automation," says Trinchera. For example, Kinexon's technology can be used to equip transport robots or pallets to make processes more efficient. "Theoretically, we can even network every screwdriver."

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